Blenheim

This painting by Joshua Ross celebrates the victory at Blenheim. The Duke of Marlborough is with his staff in the right foreground and a carriage drawn by grey horses passes by. There is a coat of arms on the door of the carriage but too indistinct to say whether it is the Duke's carriage. The first message that Marlborough sent home after the battle was to his wife, and in the letter he mentions that Tallard and two of his general were now prisoners and were in his carriage at the time of writing. The painting may well depict the departure of the VIP prisoners with their large cavalry escort. The battle still continued after the surrender of the French Commander-in-Chief as can be seen by the clouds of gunsmoke on the battlefield. The Buffs were engaged at this stage of the battle because the defenders of the village of Blenheim were unaware of Tallard's surrender.